Blessings

Want to see something

amazing,

tragic,

hopeful,

beautiful

and inspiring?

Go here

(and read the post)

(or at least look at the photos)

And have a beautiful day...

Better yet, have a beautiful Life,

And count your many blessings often.

Or So She Says...

I was featured on "Or So She Says" today

Check out some of my graphic design tips here!

Thanks, Jessica & Mariel!

P.S. Anyone notice the crispness of my header? shaBAM! Tip: Upload to your header to your favorite stock photo website and upload the "Direct Link" to your blog "From The Web."

Clouds

I don't think I'm alone in saying that sometimes I just feel gloomy.

Like, "blah" + snowy grey skies on an otherwise productive Saturday = gloomy.

I blame the clouds.

Not even the clouds in the sky, so much as the clouds in my head.

The clouds that awaken like a snow storm whenever I selfishly give myself even a split second to stew about my "misfortunes" and things beyond my control.

The clouds are not light and fluffy.

They're gloomy.

But that got me thinking,

The clouds may be covering the sun right now

. . . but The Sun is still there, will always be there,

Shining just as brightly as it ever has before,

And if you look hard enough,

You'll see it.

Hope will break through and prove to you once more

Just how flimsy and translucent those "daunting" clouds really are.

The Sun is constant.

image source

Story of My Life

I hope you all have a fantabulous weekend and that the sun sticks around for a long long time! Go away till next Christmas, snow. K? Thanks. HAPPY FRIDAY!

Brian Regan tonight! WAHOO!

P.S. Anyone know how to make my header look as crisp as these images?

P.P.S. I'll announce the giveaway winner next wednesday, so make sure you enter! :)

*All images copyright of Lindsay Kay. Thank you.

PPP Giveaway!

Voile, folks!

Life Is Beautiful presents our (my) first ever GIVEAWAY:

"Master Your Metabolism"

by Jillian Michaels

What's the occasion you ask?

Well friends, this morning I weighed myself,

Which is not my favorite pastime,

But this time, I was pleasantly surprised to see

That all my hard work

(i.e. eating healthy and exercising at least 45 minutes every day)

Has paid off!!

5 pounds, GONE!

That feels so good!

In fact, today on the way to school Dad said,

"No amount of donuts in the world can bring you the feeling

That you get from eating right and exercising."

I give my hearty "Amen!" to that statement.

So, in the spirit of health and generosity,

I am bestowing upon one lucky reader,

One of the many sources of my health,

This book!

Full of recipes, exercise tips and a whole new way of taking care of your health!

Madre, Dad and I have been following this book's diet and exercise plan for two weeks

And it's been fabulously rewarding to see the results and share in one another's successes!

To enter

Please comment on this post

or

Email: lindsaykayphotography@gmail.com - Subject: "PPP Giveaway"

with the following information:

a) Your favorite nutritious recipe (snack or meal)

b) Your favorite way to exercise and why

c) Your motivation to get fit and stay healthy

d) Your fitness goal(s) (i.e. "lose 20 pounds" or "size 4 pants" and so forth)

AND

e) If you haven't already, add the PPP button to your blog and inspire others to be healthy with you!

Good luck, one and all!

Get motivated! Get fit!

Be happy!

BIZ-A

This week is going to be crazy.

You know those weeks when your teachers plot against you

And make all of your projects due at the same time?

Yeah,

It's one of those weeks.

And, ya know,

I was almost about to label this week with a big ugly stamp:

So close.

But we all know why that would be ridiculous, right?

Because...

it. doesn't. matter. that. much.

Oh-ho-ho, those little secondary superficialities think they're so clever,

Always trying to weasel their way onto my list of "Life-Altering Importance."

Step away from the list, little inconsequential predicaments.

I'm not going to spend my whole week wallowing in worry.

I will simply do my best

And if I fail,

Guess what!

Flowers will still grow,

Winter will still snow,

Roosters will still crow,

Rivers will still flow,

Farmers will still sew,

Breezes will still blow,

The Earth won't spin off its axis,

Go careening into space,

Slam into the Sun

And cause the end of human civilization.

Everything will be ok.

*sigh*

Life is for living,

For loving unconditionally,

For serving those around you

Regardless of whether you "have time" or not,

For learning from mistakes over and over

And realizing that you're imperfect just like everyone else,

For trying harder each day,

And making sure that when you do fail

(because we all fail sometime or another)

You have someone who will give you a hug.

So

Breathe in.

Then,

Breathe out

And have a good day,

Today.

Then tomorrow

And so on.

Oh yeah, I design.

So, I was thinking to myself one day,

"Golly, Self! For all the designing you do every single day,

You sure don't incorporate much of it into your blog!"

So friends, I decided to switch it up a bit and design a... Cute? Cool? Fun? (whatever it is) header,

Partially inspired by my new favorite designer:

Jessica Hische and her killer Daily Drop Cap!

Bah! Slightly obsessed with her aesthetic.

It took forever to illustrate this header, but it was some good practice in Adobe Illustrator

And I think it turned out pretty stinkin' cute (if I do say so myself)!

I might even print it and frame it in my room.

Hmmmm...

Anyway, I love what I do

And now I'm sharing it with you!

I'm Not a Police Officer or Homer Simpson.

...That may seem like a weird post title, but honestly, I have been confronted with the option of devouring a donut more times in these past 3 weeks than I have in my whole entire life combined. It's like people are plotting against my fitness and nutrition goals.

Really folks, like every other day it's, "We brought DONUTS!" and, usually, twice in one day.

I kid you not.

Donuts at church.

Donuts in class.

Donuts at the Deli.

Donuts in the hallway.

Donut samples at the store.

Donuts in the break room.

You get the picture,

Lot's of free donuts everywhere.

What is it with eating donuts?

Yes, they're delicious, I know this.

I do.

So, guess how many times I gave in to these good-intended temptations...

ZERO times.

I keep telling myself I'd rather eat strawberries and yogurt anyway,

And as soon as I do, I don't feel like I "need" a donut anymore.

I'm just glad I haven't been seeing cheesecake everywhere,

Now that'd be dangerous!

(must stop drooling)

May your days be sunny and warm

And my all your temptations healthy ones.

PPP Book of the Week - Part I

Madre and I have recently been reading this

If you're as "obsessed" with The Biggest Loser as I am, she should look familiar. Jillian Michaels is one of the two trainers on The Biggest Loser and, therefore, has a wealth of knowledge about balancing our hormones through a healthy diet and exercise routine to ultimately renew our metabolism to tip-top shape. Sweet huh?

You'll be pleased to know that the diet she prescribes is not excruciating either. It's all about portions and what kinds of foods are best for our healthy and fit lifestyle.

I'm taking it on, guys and gals! I'm happy to announce that I've finally worked it into my schedule to get to the gym every day, for at least 45 minutes, and now that I have the right tools (i.e. metabolism-boosting foods) to get me going, I might just get into my desired pants size sometime soon.

Wanna know a secret? Well, it's not really a secret, but when I finally get to my desired fitness goal, I'm going to buy some jeans and use them as my fitness marker for my whole life (except for when I have babies and such). That may sound like a lofty goal, but I know I can do it.

The key?

Eating nutritious food & weekly exercise routine.

They're the unstoppable duo.

If we want to lose weight or even just maintain it, we can't eat a steady diet of fried cheesecake and Big Macs everyday and expect that, just because we ran a couple laps, we'll automatically start dropping pounds (though I wish that were the case). We can do it! BAH, I'm kind of giddy.

Eat healthy.

Sweat lots.

Therein is happiness.

I promise!

Be Excited!

Be very very excited!
(I know I am, hee hee)

Time for a

re-design!

P.S. I love my major (graphic design, that is)!